Skip to main content

Google Calendar Pack basics

Learn how to add the Google Calendar Pack to your doc and start using it to create and manage events.


With the Google Calendar Pack, you can bring your Google Calendar data into Coda for a complete single source of truth. This integration allows you to create events, send invites, manage meetings and more - directly from your Coda doc. And with two-way sync enabled, you can make edits to your events directly in Coda without worrying about things getting out of sync.


Within this article, you’ll find...

 

Add the Google Calendar Pack to your doc

To use the Google Calendar Pack, you’ll first have to add it to your doc. Just follow the steps below to do so:

  1. Click Insert in the upper right of Coda and choose Packs

  2. Type "Google Calendar" in the search-bar

  3. Choose Google Calendar from the options, then click Add to doc

add gcal pack.gif

That's it - the Google Calendar Pack is now installed. To start putting it to use, check out the following section.

 

 

 

Add building blocks to your doc

Once you’ve installed the Google Calendar Pack, you’re ready to start using any of its many building blocks. To see what this Pack has to offer, head to the Pack page by following these steps:

  1. Click on Insert in the upper right corner of your doc

  2. Select Packs

  3. Under Installed Packs, select Google Calendar

  4. Scroll through the Building blocks tab to see all the ways you can start using the Pack

add sync table gcal pack.gif

You’ll see templates, tables, buttons, formulas, and more.

To add any of these to your doc, simply click and drag onto the page. You will then be prompted to connect to your Google account in order to access that data. Follow the prompts to connect your account. If this is your first time connecting to the Google Calendar Pack, you'll be prompted to sign in to your Gmail account. And if you need a refresher on connecting to Pack accounts, check out this article.

 

 

 

Enable two-way sync for Google Calendar

When you add a Google Calendar Events sync table to your doc, you have the option to enable two-way sync. With two-way sync, you can not only sync events from Google Calendar into Coda, but you can also make edits to events directly via your Coda table and have those edits reflected in Google Calendar. This ensures that your data stays in sync and up-to-date between the two tools.

By default, two-way sync is turned off for sync tables. You can turn it on by following the steps listed here.

enable two-way sync gcal.gif

 

 

 

Example applications

You can do a lot with Google Calendar and Coda - import calendar events (and all their info), create and modify events, track how your time is being spent, and more. In this section, we’ll introduce some common applications for the Google Calendar Pack. But you can also check out the guide here for even more detail.

 

Create, update, and track events

You can use the Google Calendar Pack to create, update, and track calendar events. Within your Coda doc, draft up the event name, description, date and time, invitees, and more. Then create or update the event with the click of a button. You can also use the Events sync table to track existing events. Check out this template to learn more about this use case and find step-by-step instructions.

 

Connect your to-do list with calendar events

Create a to-do list in Coda that’s connected to your Google Calendar events. This ensures that your to-dos and your events stay in sync, so you can keep track of all your tasks in one place. You start by creating a table of tasks in Coda, then syncing in the events in your Google Calendar, and finally associating each to-do with an event. You can even use buttons to quickly create new events if one doesn’t exist yet.

For more details on how to set this up, check out this comprehensive walk-through. Or you can find a more simplified template here.

💡 Take things a step further by utilizing Coda AI. Once you’ve connected your to-do list to your events, Coda AI can help summarize your tasks, pull out insights, and make sure nothing is missed. Check out this template to learn more.

 

Time management

Visualize and track how you’re spending your time. Sync your Google Calendar events into Coda, then assign each event a category. You can then see the time spent per category, giving you a sense of where you might need to spend more or less time. You can even use Coda charts to help visualize this information. Here’s the template to get you started.

 

Manage meeting notes alongside events

If you do your scheduling in Google Calendar but prefer to take meeting notes in Coda, this use case is for you. By syncing your calendar events into your doc, you can then ensure that your meeting notes are connected to the correct event. Check out this helpful doc for more details and an example setup.

 

 

 

FAQs

How do change what data is included in my Google Calendar sync table?

Once you’ve added an Events or a Calendars sync table to your doc, you can change what data is included in the sync by editing the sync fields. To do this, just click on the down arrow in the upper left corner of the table (next to “Refresh”), then select Settings. Scroll down to the Sync section. Here, you’ll see a number of different criteria by which you can filter. For instance, for the Events table, you should see Date Range, Calendar, and Search text. You can also click +Add criteria to select from additional criteria. Once you’ve edited the sync fields as needed, be sure to click the Refresh button to apply the changes and re-sync your table.

edit sync fields gcal events.gif

For more details on customizing sync fields, check out this guide.

I’m having trouble connecting to or using the Google Calendar Pack. Help!

We suggest you check out our Troubleshooting Packs for helpful tips on some of the most common Pack issues.

How much does the Google Calendar Pack cost?

The Google Calendar Pack is included for no extra cost to all our customers on Pro, Team, and Enterprise plans. The Pack is not available to customers on the Free plan.

Which Google Calendar tables support two-way sync?

Currently, two-way sync is only available in the Events table of the Google Calendar Pack.

What building blocks does the Google Calendar Pack offer?

You can see a full list of building blocks included in the Google Calendar Pack - along with some helpful templates - by visiting the Pack listing page. Those building blocks include...

  • Tables:

    • Events

    • Calendars

  • Buttons

    • Quick Add Event

    • Create Event

    • Update Event

    • Delete Event

  • Formulas

    • Calendars()

    • BusyTimes()

    • Events()

How do I add multiple attendees to an event for the Google Calendar Pack?

If you’re using buttons to pull a list of attendees from a table and add them to an event, you should have the list of attendee email addresses in a row of the table. You will need to make sure that the email addresses are 1) separated by commas and 2) hyperlinked. If the email addresses are showing as plain text and not hyperlinked, they will not register as email addresses by the Google Calendar Pack.

 


Related resources